Dartmouth Men's Hockey Red Hot in Win over St. Lawrence

Friday, February 26

Canton, N.Y.

7:00 PM

Dartmouth College

St. Lawrence

Dartmouth Men's Hockey Red Hot in Win over St. Lawrence

2/26/2010 10:00:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

By: Dartmouth

CANTON, N.Y. – With two goals by Scott Fleming (Plainfield, Ont.), the Dartmouth men's hockey team picked up two valuable points in the ECAC Hockey standings with a 3-2 victory over St. Lawrence on Friday in Appleton Arena. The Big Green has just one game left in the regular season, taking on Clarkson tomorrow night at 7:00 pm.

Dartmouth has now won or tied five of its last six games as the Big Green is still in the hunt for home ice during next weekend's first round of the ECAC's playoffs.

Dartmouth (9-17-2, 7-12-2 ECAC) struck first with a power play tally at 13:28 when Fleming skated down the right side boards and took a shot on net from the circle. The shot looked like it came out a little but it snuck in under Tisi's pads as Adam Estoclet (Orno, Minn.) and Doug Jones (Marietta, Ga.) assisted on the goal.

St. Lawrence (14-13-7, 8-8-5 ECAC) had most of the momentum in the frame getting 17 shots on netminder James Mello (Rehoboth, Mass.) but the the Big Green goalie was up to the challenge. It was pretty even skating during the middle part of the period as each side seemed to be get more comfortable. Despite the intensity put up by the home team the team in Green matched it and carried the one-goal lead into the first break.

A second goal by Paul Lee (Garden City, N.Y.) with under 5:00 to go in the second helped the Big Green stymie a Saints offense that had been putting shots on Mello through the first two period. Lee got a pass from Evan Stephens (Bessemer, Mich.) and just put a shot on goalie Kain Tisi. Tisi not only thought but appeared like he was going to make the save as he put his arm up, instead the puck sailed right over his lifted arm and into the back of the net for Lee's third goal of the season.

With 1:47 left in the frame as a Saints penalty was expiring and Travis Vermeulen was entering the ice, Mike McKenzie took advantage of an out-of-place Mello to put up St. Lawrence's first goal of the night.

A hard shot by McKenzie had what everyone in the Arena thought was the tying goal but after a review by the officials it was determined the puck hit the cross bar and bounced behind into the net.

Fleming gave the Big Green some breathing room with a break-away three-on-two shot that sailed under Tisi's arm with under 6:00 to play in the game. Peter Boldt (Greenwich, Conn.) and Estoclet assisted on the play.

SLU cut into Dartmouth's lead with a hard working goal by Jeff Caister. The Saints had been buzzing around the Big Green nets all period long and it finally paid off as the lead was cut back to one.

Mello finished with 33 saves for the Big Green while Tisi recorded 26 for the Saints.